Anima ex Machina
by AnonBryd
Summary: Countless aeons ago, humanity was born into a world of darkness. They carved out their homes with the elements made corporeal, and the soul made physical. To combat the darkness, Huntsmen were born. Defenders of humanity, and a bulwark against the Grimm. For Tawn Jasper, Beacon Academy is the gateway to the ranks of Huntsmen and Huntresses, the Bastions of Hope.
1. Prologue

_Loosely: Soul from the Machine / Soul in the Machine_

 _Even more loosely: Aura in the Machine_

 _Summary :_

 _Countless aeons ago, humanity was born into a world of darkness. They carved out their homes with the elements made corporeal, and the soul made physical. But the further they grew, the more the Grimm despised them. To combat these creatures of hate and shadow, Huntsmen were born. Trained to fight against the Grimm and act as humanity's shield, they alone have held back the tides of Evil for as long as Man can remember. For Tawn Jasper, Beacon Academy is the gateway to the ranks of Huntsmen and Huntresses, the Bastions of Hope._

 _Foreword :_

 _It's been a while since I've written something, and this is both an attempt at getting back into it, and an attempt at writing better characters. Any and all criticism is welcome, I like to think that I have pretty thick skin. Also, I'm really skeptical about my summary, suggestions are welcome. This is crossposted from Sufficient Velocity and SpaceBattles on my account there, Alpha Zerg._

 **Prologue**

"Hey," A calming voice, low and slightly drawn out, came to me softly, "Don't worry, it'll be fine. It's just the first day, I'm sure you'll make lots of friends here." He put his hand on my shoulder and gripped it lightly, "It's a bit bigger than you're used to, but you'll be alright. Just remember to be nice, and stand up for yourself."

A grin flickered onto his face, then subsided back into a teasing smile.

"And if anyone gives you any shit, break their nose." He was teasing, but he also meant it, "Then come and fetch me. I'll sort it out." The addendum came as an afterthought, but it was always touching to know that, no matter what, I could rely on my older brother. Sometimes (most of the time), he gave me no end of trouble, but when it mattered he was always there. To pick me up, to wipe my tears, to tell me that it would be alright.

I smiled up at him and poked him in the ribs.

"... You know Mommy doesn't like it when you swear."

"Hah! It'll be our secret, right?"

"Hmmm... I don't know, what will you give me?"

"Tch, how about..."

His voice drifted off, and a bright light grew from the center of my vision. The world faded around me, the light growing to encompass everything. There was a fuzziness around the edges, as shapes started forming outside the light.

 _"His aura blew another junction, I'm replacing it now!"_

 _My head lulled to the side, where a blurry person was holding onto a metal arm._

 _A drill sounded, screwing in something I couldn't see. Darkness flooded my vision, then the scene returned as my eyelids opened. A mumbled, "Mmmph?" Escaped my lips, and the head snapped towards me._

 _"Shit, he's coming up, give him more anaesthetics."_

 _"Will do," A voice from my other side. I tried to move my head to that side, but I couldn't see anything from there. There was only the bright light from right above me._

 _The light faded._

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The dust-powered trip hammer rang out against steel repeatedly. The forge was stiflingly hot, the fire dust in the furnace releasing and maintaining the incredibly high temperatures required to render the specialised steel malleable.

I grabbed the piece of steel out and turned it over, then put it back into the furnace for a few seconds. I was forging my first true weapon, the thing that I would hopefully graduate from Signal with in the future. For now it was a test of my ability to both create and maintain my equipment in the future.

The shaft of the glaive was complete, and I hammered the last few spots of the blade into place. Next up came the intricate firing mechanisms that would go inside the shaft, and after that, the mechashift. Likely the most important part of the weapon, the mechashift assembly was nearly entirely automated, so this was the last of my work on it for now.

A smile grew on my face as I quenchd the blade in a nearby barrel of oil.

I was...

The light of the forge grew, until it was all that I could see.

 _"...the hell happened to this kid, anyway?" A voice rose out of the light, as the edges of my vision darkened slightly and fuzzy shapes appeared, "I've seen injuries this bad on full-fledged huntsmen, for gods' sakes. And they usually didn't make it..." The voice mumbled the last piece, and I barely heard it._

 _"Some sort of bullhead crash on the docks. He's hellishly lucky to be alive. He was clinging to life when the paramedics got there..." I lost track of the voice for a moment as the light swelled, "... aura was almost writhing, keeping his blood inside him, never seen it before."_

 _"Huh. Might explain why he burnt through so many junctions on the arm. Doesn't make any sense, though."_

 _"Hand me that scalpel!" A third voice, sharp and annoyed, and the shape to my left moved quickly to hand it to the shape that moved into the light above me._

 _"Easy does it..." The head moved slightly, and suddenly I could notice eyes looking at me, "He's waking up again! Give him some more sedatives!" A hand reached down and cupped my face._

 _"Don't worry, dear. Everything's going to be fine. Just go back to sleep."_

 _The brightness subsided once more._

"It is in the moments of kindness that the true strength of humanity is realised. The brief sparks of generosity lighting up the world around us, and holding back the dark. Gloriously bright and immeasurably powerful, I raise you up, and exalt your soul as a beacon of hope."

A pitiful light glowed, flickering fitfully as it tried to express itself, then disappearing just as quickly as it arrived.

"I know you wanted to do this yourself, Tawn, and I'm sorry. I spoke to your Aura teacher, and Mom and Dad spoke to a doctor. Your aura too weak for you to have manifested it naturally. You can train it to be stronger now, but you wouldn't have done it by yourself."

"Yes, I cou..." I bit back the words. "You're right." It came reluctantly, sulkily. I wasn't happy to admit that there was something that I wasn't good at. I was used to putting in effort, and coming out on top. It stung to find out that there was a part of me, so deeply ingrained, that was just too feeble for me to do anything about.

I sat back down onto my knees.

"You're right." This time it was clearer. Determined. "But now I can work on it. I'll practice hard and strengthen my aura. I won't let this hold me back."

The light of my brother's aura strengthened briefly, but died down quickly.

"... the strength of the effect is directly proportional to the amount of aura you use to power the reaction. More aura means a stronger effect, less means weaker."

My Basics of Aura and Dust teacher. I picked up the piece of fire dust that was in front of me and focused a bit of "myself" into the crystal. The glow that surrounded my hands was just a little bit dimmer than that around my classmates', but I was proud of it. My aura had grown immensely since the day my brother unlocked it. I had been working on it every day, meditating, depleting it and recovering from the drain, every method that I could find.

I was sure that I knew my aura far better than my peers did theirs, and with knowledge came control. The light slowly dimmed as I prepared to release it into a controlled flame.

 _Hisssss._

A perfectly average flame, taking far more effort than I allowed everyone around me to realise. I bent it this way and that, and finally sculpted it into the shape of a dragon's head. Just for fun. A few moments longer, making sure the teacher saw it, and I let it fade away. Sitting down quietly, focusing on my breathing to hide my exhaustion.

My eyes were a bit heavy and I blinked slowly.

The stone in front of me moved with my focus. My mind fixated unwaveringly on the hard rock as it rose into the air slowly. Some people discovered their semblance in a moment of rage, others in weakness. Some of them gained the knowledge through a dream, and even more never discovered it at all. I couldn't remember where or how I learnt it. One day I just came to the certainty that being able to exert your will on the world around you was the purest form of power.

And my soul agreed.

An effort of focus and the stone wavered for a moment, then cracked loudly. I slowly split the rock in two, my focus splitting with them, until the two halves hung in front of me. I could feel the drain on my soul as the effort tired me out, until suddenly I couldn't concentrate on both pieces anymore, and they fell to the ground.

This was who I was.

A blinding pain erupted in my leg, and the world burst with colours. Pain so intense that stars of red, blue, green, _black_ burst into my vision, before they collected into one.

 _White light glared from above me. I thrashed on the surface I was lying on, a scream bubbling past my lips._

 _My leg twisted a bit, and I ripped my head upwards to see what I could. Both of my eyes focused on my knee, or what was left of it, as a metal fitting was attached to it. A film of light stuck between the metal and my flesh for a moment, little hait-thin tendrils rising up to feel around the metal, wavering slightly as if making a decision, then settling down. With the light fading, the metal contacted the raw muscle and bone directly, and a fresh wave of agony washed over me._

 _My body flexed involuntarily, and with a great ripping sound I was suddenly free!_

 _"Shit! Get some more sedative in him! He'll hurt himself!" The voice came from right behind me, and I felt cool, gloved hands touch my shoulders gently and guide me down. I was tired again, and I relaxed on the table, the bright light above me making me look elsewhere. The hands moved up to my face, and another face looked down at me. The voice sounded familiar, as if I had heard it recently._

 _"Hey, don't worry. You're nearly there. Everything is okay. Just calm down," She repeated the words softly, soothingly._

 _"Wha..." My throat croaked as I tried to speak, but she interrupted me quietly._

 _"Shhh... Just relax, it's all alri..." The voice drifted away as my eyes closed, and darkness returned._

"A bit late for a flight into Vale, isn't it, kid?" A pilot. I blinked for a moment before I remembered where I was. The pilot of the bullhead I was in. I was the only passenger on this flight, sitting in the cockpit with the pilot. It was technically just a cargo flight, but they let me fly as a passenger because the flight I was supposed to be on was cancelled.

"I guess. To be honest, I'm just hoping I'll get to the hotel before midnight. Apparently I have to check in before then." It was a legitimate concern to me. This was the first time I was going into Vale by myself, not to mention for a few nights as well. "After that... I'll be in Beacon, so there isn't anything to worry about there."

"Huh. It is about that time of year, isn't it?" The pilot mused, "Good luck then, kid. From what I hear you'll need it."

I smiled a bit. I'd been working hard for this. Nearly the top of my class, only brought down by a few things that I hadn't been willing to exhaust myself on. A rapid turnaround from my first few years at Signal. Firmly below average at everything, half because of my lack of aura, and the other half from lack of motivation. I had made a choice to be better, and then my brother had awoken my painfully weak aura, and everything turn around.

I was ready for whatever Beacon could throw at me.

"Thanks. I-"

"Get down!" The abrupt warning interrupted me, and I was flung to the side as the bullhead shuddered. Out the widow all I could see was the darkness of the night, and the lights of the Vale docks a distance away. For a moment I thought I saw a flash of white and red, then the bullhead shuddered again.

A flame burst into life on the wing as something ignited, and a dark shape was revealed on the wing. As black as the night around it, a mask of white, and blood red eyes.

A Nevermore.

It's eyes locked onto mine, and a palpable malevolence filled them as it slowly reached its beak downwards. Without breaking eye contact, it ripped the remains of the wing off.

Then it was gone.

"Shit! Shit, kid, we're going down!" The pilot was panicked, and he fumbled for a device on the dashboard. "Vale aircontrol, this is Cargo Flight 243 from Patch, we're a click out from the docks, coming in hard! Our wing's been torn off by a Nevermore, no sign of it no-" The bullhead shuddered again, and the hull to the pilot's side ripped open.

One moment the pilot was sitting in his seat, the next he was gone, an ivory grip ripping him out.

The bullhead sped up, the lights from the docks leapt closer, and suddenly the ground was much closer than I thought.

Clarity filled my mind as the roaring around me seemed to fade. The ground was creeping forward.

I reached out with my soul, my very being, and I pushed against the world. For the briefest of moments, I thought I may have achieved something. That my raging against the sudden upheaval would force the world to bend to my will.

Thought was torn from my mind as something impaled my shoulder. I looked down disbelievingly as a spike of metal grew from my chest. My right arm hung limp.

Sound returned to my ears with a pained tearing of metal, and more impacts followed, until with a final crunch, my sight faded.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter One

 _Beep. Beep. Beep._

I came to to the beeping of a heart monitor and the soft light of a shattered moon streaming through an open window. _'It's amazing that something so thoroughly broken is so beautiful...'_ My focus wavered and I stared blankly at the light, relaxing mindlessly.

A few minutes later I flinched slightly as I came back to myself. I reached and rubbed my eyes, pushing myself up in the bed to sit against the headboard. I froze. Slowly my hand lifted up again, then the other one to confirm that I was seeing what was in front of me. I turned the skeletal appendages around, staring at the back of them. I could see the sheets through the gaps in the machinery. Grey steel hands, barebones to the extreme, barring slots here and there where the rods seemed twice as thick.

My eyes moved further up my arms, not a sound disturbing the room. The strange sight continued. Two rods connecting my wrist to a joint at the elbow, in turn joined to a humerus equivalent. I brushed the sleeve on my left arm up a bit, the loose material fluttering lightly to rest on my collarbone. _My_ collarbone. The metal extended only until the top of the bicep, where it blossomed out to a cup and seemed to fuse seamlessly with flesh. A closer glance revealed soft white tendrils digging into the metal from a spot where the metal wasn't quite merged with my arm yet.

The gap disappeared as I watched, leaving the flesh to smoothly join the metal. I didn't know the intricacies of cybernetic prostheses, but I knew that even with aura it typically took weeks or even months for the body to adapt to the new limb. Even then, sometimes it was the aura itself that fought against the foreign attachment, leading to troubles that could last for years. I was entranced as I saw the little flickers of light, until finally the seam was dark, illuminated only by the moonlight.

Knowing what to expect now, I reached across to my right arm, casually pulling the sleeve up, then I stopped. It was still metal. I slowly pulled it up further, and the metal didn't stop. My breath quickened a tiny bit, the beeps coming quicker on the monitor. The sleeve reached my shoulder and the metal hadn't stopped yet. I reached over my shoulder to where the hospital gown opened up and tried to pull it down.

Half-way over my shoulder I felt a strange static rush though non-existant nerves, and the fingers didn't respond. I grabbed the arm with my other one and pulled it in front of me where I could see the fingers twitching uncontrollably. Slowly, the soft white glow of my aura crept over the limb until it reached the hand. Little feelers of aura creeping forward until it covered the metal like a mat, weaving together and before long the light had settled over the entire limb. Then it sank into the robotic arm and slowly feeling returned to my hand.

In fact, I could feel with it. I hesitantly touched the sheet on top of me, and a slight pressure responded. _'My aura is providing tactile feedback. It feels strange. Is this normal?'_ I wouldn't get an answer to that now, so I focused on other things instead.

Like what I was doing before the... glitch?

I shook my head slightly and reached back over, pulling the light gown over my chest and down my arm. My entire right side was metal. No, that wasn't right. A full quarter of my torso was metal and a bit more of my pectoral muscle-

 _A dull feeling of disbelief as I look down and see a spike protruding from my chest._

-Was all shining steel. The scene flickered through my mind, confusing me. When had that happened? Obviously just before this. I brushed the thoughts from my mind again. Or did my mind shy away from them? Either way, I focused on finding out how much metal I had in me now.

The gown came away easily. The ribs and midriff were slightly segmented, allowing the steel to move as I breathed, but I imagined that it could just as easily be covered in armour as well. I pushed the gown further, past my waist. Something snagged on my arm and I noticed the heart-rate monitor pads for the first time on my chest. I carefully unsnagged the wire and left the pads in place, but carried on my exploration. A good portion of my pelvis was gone, replaced by a framework of metal, but it seemed my genitals survived intact. Barely.

Further down, my entire right leg from the hip down was what you would expect to see on a primitive robot, while the left leg was more similar to the arm, a metal limb reaching up to a cup on my upper thigh that joined the flesh. It looked rather surreal.

I wondered to myself whether I was taking this calmly or whether I was just in shock. Maybe a bit of both. I sat back against the headboard and breathed.

A little while later, the door opened and a nurse walked in. She stopped dead in her tracks as her eyes met mine and it looked like she had seen a ghost. Or maybe not, she could just have been very surprised. It was quite dark. The room brightened slightly, my eyes probably getting used to the night. I couldn't see what colour her hair was, but it was dark, so probably brown or black, and everything else was a bit nondescript.

"Mr Jasper?" I nodded. "How are you feeling?" She did sound quite concerned.

"I..." I coughed briefly, my throat drier than I had realised. The anaesthetics, most likely.

"Here, I'll get you some water." She put down the clipboard in her hands and filled a glass of water. "Small sips, now." I reached out and took it from her, nodding my head in thanks.

"Thank you," The words croaked passed my lips, but they were there. "I'm feeling fine, thanks."

"Fine?" She sounded sceptical. She looked sceptical too. "Any pain? Issues adapting to the prostheses?"

"No, miss. I feel... fine." She stared at me for a long moment, then went to go look through the readouts on the machines.

"No anaesthetic left, not even a light painkiller, heart rates constant at fifty-seven for the last four hours, blood pressure fine... Aura..." She was mumbling to herself, but it was just loud enough for me to hear. "Hmmm..."

She looked back at me. "Yes, you do seem to be doing... fine."

A lapse gathered as she carried on looking through the readouts, before coming to a conclusion. "We'll be able to release you within the week, depending on what the doctor says in the morning. Gods know how, most patients with half your wounds were bedridden for months. Even with aura."

"I..." She hummed in acknowledgement, "What happened, miss?"

"Aah, I understand. The mind often represses traumatic incidents until you are able to cope with it. You were..." She took a moment to gather her thoughts, "On a flight from Patch, if I remember correctly. The bullhead was attacked-"

 _Blood red eyes set in an ivory mask, staring in at me with the purest of hatreds._

"- and crashed into the Vale docks. The pilot had managed to alert authorities before the crash, so there were paramedics on site to get you stabilized as soon as you hit the ground. There were remarkably few flames around the crash, if I remember correctly, so it was easy enough to get to your body." She paused as she remembered something, "Um, after they cut through everything you were impaled on."

"I..." I stopped and thought for a while. That sounded true, like something that I was sure had happened, but couldn't remember the details of. Almost like a dream. "That sounds right, miss. Thank you."

"No problem, Mister Jasper. Now, I came here to check up on how you were doing, but you are obviously in far better condition than we expected, so I'll give you a few choices. We can't let you eat solids yet, luckily none of your digestive tract was damaged, but it's still not a good idea, however-"

"Um, sorry miss," She stopped talking, raising her eyebrow, "Could you tell me how long I've been here?"

"Aaah," She mused, "Yes, you've been here for four nights now. Haven't uttered a sound since the surgery. Until now, of course. Even then, we expected you to be asleep for the next few weeks, at the least. Especially with how little aura you have."

"I... I don't know, miss. I just... woke up."

"Never mind that." She tallied a few things up in her head, "Are you feeling tired?" I shook my head. "Well, would you like something to read? We couldn't recover any of your possessions, but you could use my scroll until you feel ready to sleep. Just leave it on the table." She patted the bedside table and took out her scroll, unlocking it with a quick swipe, "The password is three-two-jenny-two-three if you lock it again."

"Are you Jenny then, miss?" I asked her as I took the scroll from her.

"No that's my daughter," A small smile played on her lips as she said it.

"Thank you anyway, miss. May I know your name?"

"I'm Nurse Jean Haleigh, nice to meet you, Mister Jasper. And it's no problem at all."

"Nice to meet you too, miss."

She puttered around for a few minutes longer and I started looking through her scroll for something to read. Eventually I settled on something, and soon enough I fell asleep.

I could almost forget about the cold steel attached to my flesh as I drifted off.

The door opened softly, rousing me from my sleep. There was sunlight streaming in through the window now and I could see some trees outside. A park, maybe?

"Mister Jasper, are you awake?" A nurse's head popped in around the door, it was a different one to yesterday.

"Mmm," I hummed comfortably.

"You have a visitor, Mister Jasper. The doctor has to see you first though. How are you feeling?"

"... M'Fine." A few moments later and I woke up fully, "Yep, I'm fine nurse." The last few seconds replayed in my head.

"A visitor?"

"Yes, Professor Ozpin from Beacon Academy. Do you want to see him?"

"Um," I swallowed reflexively. Professor Ozpin? Why... no. He probably wanted to see me because of the crash. It was... "Miss, what's the date?"

"It's the... twenty-third of September, why?"

"The Beacon Initiation starts today."

"Ah. That explains why Professor Ozpin is here then. I'll let the doctor know you're ready for your checkup, then you can speak with the Professor, alright?"

"Thank you, miss."

She left the room, and I took the opportunity to sit up again, waiting until the doctor came in. Nurse Jean's scroll wasn't there anymore, so she probably took it while I was asleep.

Soon enough the doctor came in. She had soft blonde hair, a pretty face, and bright blue eyes. I stared.

"Good morning, Mister Jasper, how are you feeling?" Her voice was light, soothing. Memorable.

"I know those eyes." I blurted, "I know _you_!" My brain caught up with me, but I was too far gone to blush, "No, I don't. I do though, I've heard your voice... where?" I wasn't sure if that came out curiously, or aggressive. I hoped it was the first.

She seemed taken aback for a moment, then chuckled lightly, "It's alright. I certainly know you well enough, seeing as I put you back together."

 _"Hey, don't worry. You're nearly there. Everything is okay. Just calm down. Shhh... Just relax, it's all_ alri _..."_

"You!" I breathed out, half in awe, half in shock from the memory that flitted through my mind.

"Me?" She smiled, "Yes, I had to do quite a bit of work on you that night. Let's see how you're holding up, shall we?"

"Um, sure. I'm feeling fine, really."

"Hmhmm, Nurse Jean told me that this morning, but I just need to check to be sure." She walked up to the side of the bed, "Lift your arm." She tapped my left arm with a pen. I lifted it. She tapped the right arm, and I lifted it as well. "And down." I dropped them. "Lift them both and rotate." I lifted them and started to rotate, then that strange staticky feeling from last night washed through both of them and my arm stopped responding, fingers twitching.

"Interesting."

"It did this last night as well, miss."

"Oh, where are my manners? I'm Doctor Alice Blou, nice to meet you, Mister Jasper. Do you want me to call you Tawn?"

"Yes, please, Doctor Blou."

"Very well, back to the matter at hand. You mentioned that this happened last night as well? How did you recover?"

"Well," I noticed the same thing that I did yesterday, tiny fibres of aura beginning to creep across my arms, both this time, "Just watch." It took nearly two minutes, judging by the clock on the wall. Doctor Blou was enraptured the entire time, mumbling things like, "Incredible," and, "Unprecedented."

When it was over, she nodded and looked at me, "What is your semblance, Mister Jasper?"

"I, um, versatile telekinesis, Doctor." She seemed surprised by the answer, as if she were expecting something else.

"Okay, let's move on. I'm going to give you a slight poke, and tell me how it feels."

Poke. "It's fine, Doctor." It was just my chest.

Poke. "Same thing." A bit lower, just above my heart.

Poke. "Still the same." My left shoulder, near where the metal joins the flesh.

Poke. "Fine." My left arm, on the metal cup that connects to my shoulder.

"You can feel that?" She was surprised again.

"Yes, why?"

"It usually takes a few months before the aura starts to impregnate a cybernetic prosthetic enough to give tactile feedback. Although given what we just saw, I would say your aura is adapting as quickly as possible to anything that may be wrong. It could explain why you were still alive after being impaled through your lung and had the entire right side of your body crushed for several minutes."

We were silent for a minute as I processed that. "Okay."

"Okay?" She asked.

"Okay." I nodded.

Poke. She carried on for a while, testing everything from the seams where the flesh joined metal, to bare flesh, to between the rods of the structure that made up the right-hand side of my pelvis.

"You are free to modify your prosthetics however you wish, but do keep in mind that the excess mass you see on some of the components will slot into place as you age, keeping your limbs approximately the right size for your age. When you reach twenty-one the prosthetics will be fully extended and allow you to use all the space for whatever purposes you require. For now, I would recommend sticking to an outside casing, and maybe a few extra pistons for added power."

"Thanks, Doctor. I'll keep that in mind."

"Now," She leaned in a little bit closer, "How's your eye doing?"

"My... eye?" I was confused, then realisation hit, and resignation set in.

Sympathy covered her face, and she picked up a mirror, silently holding it up in front of me.

Where once there was an orb with a white sclera, brown iris, and black pupil, now there was a dark grey spiralled shutter, leading sharply to a pure black pupil. A scar dug into the skin to the bottom and top edges of the socket, and I wouldn't have been surprised if whatever took out my eye also nicked a bit of bone along with it. I noticed the shutter of my new eye rotating open as I focused on a darker area of the room, and I closed them both. I frowned and took a deep breath.

When I opened them, I just nodded at the Doctor, and she inspected it.

"Everything looks good. Do you have any questions or concerns, while I'm here?"

I just shook my head.

She busied herself checking readings, asked me a few more questions, and noted some things down on a clipboard. Finally, she said she would send Professor Ozpin up and left me alone.

I picked up the mirror and looked into my own eyes. For a brief moment, the pupil lit up with white as I assumed my aura fixed something it didn't like. I concentrated on my being for a moment, and the glow intensified, along with a pleasant feeling inside the eye, like an itch had just been scratched. The room looked a bit... sharper when I looked away.

Of course, that was the moment Professor Ozpin walked in. Me sitting in a hospital bed, chest uncovered, barebones prosthetics on display, a mirror in my hand, and a glowing eyeball.

"Well, good morning, Mister Jasper. Are you enjoying yourself?" The Professor's voice was as nonchalant as they came. As if he were discussing a particularly mild bit of weather.

"Um," My brain stuttered, and I robotically, heh, lowered my arms, "I guess? Uh... nice to meet you, Professor?"

"And you as well, Mister Jasper." He studied me in silence for a few moments, "I trust you have been recovering well since the accident?"

"Uh, yes, Professor. I've only been awake since last night, but it's been fine."

"Good. Now, I trust you are aware of the fact that Beacon's initiation formally starts at noon today?" His voice betrayed nothing, and his face was too calm for me to read into that question. Was he feeling pity, because I wouldn't be able to take part? Anticipation, because he was going to unveil some scheme to allow me to take part anyway? Amusement at me trying to decipher his intentions? I wasn't sure.

"Yes, Professor."

"Contrary to popular belief, however, the true test of the initiation only takes part on the second day." He gave me a moment to take that in for myself, "Tomorrow.

"Thus, if you are sufficiently determined to join our academy, you should be fully able to demonstrate that determination. I have had a brief conversation with your doctor, and, based on my personal observations, I do believe that you could join us tomorrow." A pause, "What do you say?"

I looked down at my hands in my lap. The gunmetal steel interspersed with a few wires here and there, little motors at the joints running off of my aura, responding to my intentions. There was a slight strain that I could notice from powering the limbs, but if I were to quantise it I doubt it would be more than it took to "power" your natural limbs. A thought and the hands closed, tightening into fists with a slight whiz. I released them, then clenched them, and released them again. Finally, I looked back up to Ozpin.

"I'll do it."

He smiled at me and nodded calmly, "Then we have some things to take care of, don't we?" He pulled up a chair, "I am aware that your equipment was destroyed in the crash, but there isn't enough time for you to be able to re-forge a weapon. You will unfortunately have to use the gear that we have stored in the Armoury. It will not be your own personal equipment, but you should find our stock more than suitable for your purposes. You will, of course, have full access to the forge at Beacon once you've completed the initiation." Amusement twinkled in his eyes for a moment, "I daresay you will find the facilities more than sufficient for your needs."

I frowned for a moment, thinking about that. Then I realised. _'Of course Beacon would have a state-of-the-art foundry. Hell, it's probably more advanced than anything I've ever **seen**! "More than sufficient," my ass. Although...'_ I looked down at my hands, _'In all_ likelyhood _, I'll probably need it. I have... a lot more hardware to take care of now.'_

I looked at the scroll in my hand for a moment, then back up at him, "Thank you, Professor." It is often difficult to express sincerity with only a few words, but I liked to think that he understood.

"It is no problem at all, Mister Jasper. Now, one last thing before I leave you to your own devices. You will be picked up from the hospital at six tomorrow morning. There will be a Beacon Uniform inside, should you wish to wear it. I don't believe a hospital gown would lend itself well to fighting. If you pass the initiation, you will be provided with a small stipend to replace the rest of your belongings lost in the accident. Should you fail..."

"I understand, Professor. Thank you again."

"Good. I look forward to seeing you tomorrow, Mister Jasper."

"You too, Professor."


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

I awoke in the morning to the sound of birds not far from my window and I was out of bed and on my feet in seconds. The early morning sun breaking through trees to give the room a calming glow. Unfortunately, I was anything but calm inside. From the moment my eyes opened my chest twinged with that unwilling anxiety, that feeling you get when you are stressed but you know you've done everything you possibly could to prepare. It didn't help that what I could remember of my dreams were flashes of crimson gems set in bone, steel impaled in flesh and then growing to replace it, corpses charred in a smouldering wreck. At least I had gotten a good nine hours or so of sleep. There wasn't much else that I could have done.

The afternoon after Ozpin left was spent convincing the kind Doctor Blou that I probably wasn't going to kill myself or get myself killed, and that she shouldn't just have me locked into my room so that I couldn't leave. I got the feeling that she was a bit unhappy with me, but honestly? It could have been worse. At least she cared, which is a very nice thing to have in someone responsible for your wellbeing. On top of the convincing though, I had attempted to get used to my new appendages.

It was... strange, to say the least. Most of the time I could almost forget that they were there. They reacted to my intentions just as well as my old arms did, it was fully instinctive. I wasn't sure how much of that was me learning to use the limbs naturally, a testament to the thought and design put into them, or something more abstract going on. My aura was acting strangely of late. I didn't want to think too much about my very soul doing things of its own volition.

There were a lot of things that I didn't want to think too much about.

 _'I wonder how my family is doing?'_

My parents and older brother lived all over the place. My mother worked in Atlas doing... stuff. Some sort of research for some sort of government agency. All hush-hush, very secretive, "If I tell you I will have to kill you," kind of stuff. By contrast, my father was in Vacuo doing a little bit of Hunting, as well as being a tour guide every now and then. They weren't mutually exclusive, after all. My brother... he was also Hunting, but he was in Mistral, and I wasn't too sure what he was up to. All I knew was that he was doing well and that I missed him a little bit. I missed them all, to be honest. Sitting in a chair looking out at the trees and the birds yesterday had given me time to think about my family, to distract me from everything else going on. They probably didn't even know I had been injured. My mom might have felt something was up, she was weird that way, but she would need to get to a Cross-Continental Transmit Tower to be able to send a message. And when she did get to a CCT Tower she wouldn't be able to reach me because my scroll had been destroyed.

To make things worse, it had been a few days since the accident, so the story had probably already hit the news. I was going to have to get in touch with her as soon as possible. She was likely to storm Vale looking for me if I didn't.

I sighed. Yet another issue to ignore.

Getting a basic blue pair of shorts and a white t-shirt on that had been left for me by a nurse, I did some stretches. Not that they would actually loosen up my joints or anything, but they would help for a bit of debugging. Every time my limbs acted up, my aura would fix the problem in moments, and those specific issues had yet to appear again. It could only fix a single issue at a time though, and only when they appeared. I had to clean up a broken glass yesterday, I'd torn a sheet trying to make the bed, collapsed to the floor when a leg gave out, among other issues. The new limbs were strong, yes, but it normally took years for a person to fully synchronise with a new limb. I had four and had had the prostheses for an almost equal amount of days. My eye had yet to glitch, and I was sorely grateful for that. I don't think I would have been able to keep calm for long if that had happened.

When my left leg seized up for a moment I grabbed onto the bed and rode it out. I wasn't sure, no, I definitely wasn't properly prepared for today. All I could do was hope that I didn't end up in a compromising position, but... I sighed. That was a bit much to hope for. Combat introduced so many different variables that I was bound to be glitching almost as often as I wasn't. All I could really hope for is that I can compensate for the glitches. I didn't know what kind of test we were going to be involved in, just that it involved fighting Grimm. Cloud had graduated from Beacon as well, but every year's test was unique. It was funny, really. I had gotten on that bullhead four days early for the test to make sure I had ample time to deal with anything that came up. It seemed that my planning had been ironically useful.

Looking around the room after I finished the stretches I almost hoped that there was something that I could say that I had forgotten, but... I came into this room with nothing to my name. I would be leaving it with the same. The clothes were technically on loan. In fact... I was leaving the hospital with even less than I came in.

My breath hitched for a second as I stepped through the wardroom door. I looked back one last time. I'd made the bed, the chairs were organised neatly against the door, the monitors were off and neatly out of the way (although I hadn't had anything to do with those). All in all, there wasn't anything to indicate that I had been in here for five days. A feeling clotted up in my chest again, almost like the ever-present knot of anxiety but thicker. Harder to ignore, and harder to suppress.

I didn't have a choice though. I was going to do this, and the bullhead was going to be here in a few minutes. I didn't have time to cry, much as I may have wanted to curl up in a corner and sob.

My eyes were wet, a window told me as I walked passed. I wiped them and moved on. The signs were rather helpful in leading me to the lobby, although I would have to get up to the roof to be able to leave by bullhead. The white walls, dark windows, sanitation signs, health guidance placards, all suitably medical and helpful distraction as I reached the lobby. Maybe repression isn't healthy in the long run, but it was damn well all I could do.

"Hi, I need to sign out?" The man staffing the counter was as bored as you would expect from someone manning a reception desk shortly after dawn. Dark hair, light eyes, drooping eyelids, and circles, he was probably nearing the end of his shift.

He yawned, "Name?"

"Tawn Jasper."

"One," The word dragged on for a brief moment, "Second. Okay, you've got to get up to the roof in a few minutes, right?" I nodded and he picked up a clipboard and a pen, "Here. Go through this, sign when you're done." I took them from him and sat down on a chair nearby. They were simple questions, name, date of birth, sex, confirm that you are of a sound mental condition, confirm that you don't hold the hospital responsible for any further injury especially those caused by your early departure, etcetera. Not that you could do anything to the hospital if you did, it was run, funded, and supported by the Valian Government, just like all the hospitals in Vale. You didn't pay for the service, and you didn't complain about the service. Unless it was horrible service or mistreatment, in which case the government would punish those who provided it. Keeping people happy is the best defence against the Grimm, after all. They can't kill you if they aren't near you, and without negative emotions, they won't seek you out.

They'll still kill you if you are just unlucky enough to stumble upon you because they are hatred for humanity made manifest. Or something like that. It's just as plausible an explanation as any other, to be honest.

I finally filled out the forms and handed them back to the receptionist. He skimmed over it briefly and put it to one side.

"Everything looks good. I'll unlock the elevator for you and you can take it up to the roof. Follow me," And follow him I did. It wasn't far away, which makes sense. A roof elevator at a hospital would usually be used to bring patients in, so the exit point should be close to the central hub and the lobby is connected to everywhere else in the hospital.

"Here you go, Mister Jasper. Good luck on whatever you're doing," He didn't seem too interested, but I was grateful for the words anyway.

"Thank you, Mister," I took a brief glance at his nametag, "Whight?" He nodded, but a thought occurred to me, "Oh, and could you by any chance do me a favour? There was a nurse who was really nice, Jean?" He raised his eyebrow, but nodded again, "Could you please give her my thanks? And Doctor Blou too."

"I'll do that."

"Thank you." I smiled at him and turned to enter the elevator.

"Mister Jasper!" A woman's voice, one that I doubt I would ever be able to forget. I turned to see Doctor Blou rounding a corner at a brisk walk. "I sincerely hope you aren't about to leave without a final checkup?"

"I thought that was last night, Doctor?" She seemed taken aback for a moment, and as she got closer I noticed that she also looked dead on her feet. A frown crossed her face as she thought.

"Hm, you're right. I apologise, it's been a trying few days. Not the least helped by your insistence to dive into mortal danger a week before you're supposed to be cleared to leave," She definitely wasn't happy, but she wasn't going to try and stop me. She had tried enough yesterday, to no avail.

"Let me walk you to the bullhead, it will put me at ease, if nothing else," We got into the elevator together. It was big, spacious enough to carry two patients on stretchers along with paramedics. With just the two of us, it felt even larger, but we ascended quietly.

The doors opened with a _ding!_ and we got out. The bullhead was already there. A large metal vertical take-off and landing aircraft, the most widely used vehicle in Remnant. Including land vehicles. Transport in the cities was usually handled by trains or buses, with personal vehicles usually unnecessary due to the efficiency of public transport and the danger of travelling between cities by land. Of course, I was a walking testament to the fact that no method of transport is truly safe. Ships face the threat of aquatic Grimm, aircraft had to deal with airborne Grimm. They are just slightly rarer than the endless hordes of landlocked Grimm. The bullhead's engines were still warm, just waiting for me to get on so it could leave again.

The rough cement roof felt strange against my metal feet as we walked closer. I could feel that I was walking on something and that it was a bit course, but I couldn't feel the coolness of the concrete, nor the damp from a bit of rain that I must have missed through the night, but could be seen by the concrete's colour.

"Be safe, Tawn. I know it's a lot to ask, especially from a young huntsman-in-training, but try. I don't want to have to stitch you together a second time," She forced a smile onto her face, but the worry was still there in her eyes, shadowed by exhaustion. "The first time was difficult enough."

"I'll try, Doctor." I tried to smile in return, but it probably came out as a grimace. I was reminded all too suddenly by the knot in my chest, and I reached out to hug her. "Thank you," My breath hitched and she held me tightly, "Thank you so much. For everything," The knot wanted to escape. I felt my eyes water, and I buried my face in her shoulder. She was a bit taller than me. It was the first time that I had been able to compare or notice.

"It was my pleasure, Tawn," Her voice was soft, motherly, and for a moment I wished dearly that I could be in my own mother's arms right then. She squeezed me tightly, and then told me, "Now good luck. Your flight is waiting for you."

I held on for a little while longer, taking a deep, uncertain breath, followed by a second, more even one. Then I let go.

This time I could at least smile at her without it feeling broken, and I told her, "Thank you again, Doctor. I'll try and let you know how it goes, if you want?"

"That would be nice," She returned the smile, and this time there was a little bit less worry in her eyes. I was glad.

Like tearing a plaster off, I turned around without another word and walked to the bullhead. As I approached it another feeling welled up in my chest, this one a bit more... tangible than the others. The door was already open, so I lifted my foot to get on, but the moment I put it down I felt the static of a synchronisation bug. I was keenly aware of the worrying woman that I had just turned away from, so I grabbed onto the doorway as nonchalantly as possible and pulled myself in. Once my other leg was under me, I turned around and waved with my free hand. I didn't know if she noticed the error or not, and she didn't say anything. Not that I would've been able to hear it over the sound of the engines charging up. One last wave and I walked inside.

The doors closed, and I saw my reflection on polished metal. My eye was glowing. I frowned. The feeling in my chest grew more intense as I studied that inside of the bullhead. A simple transport, a few rows of seats, bare steel, and undecorated seats. I finally pinned down what I was feeling: trepidation, but the feeling wasn't my own. A few more moments of nothing happening and the glow in my eye subsided, and along with it the majority of the foreign emotion.

Disturbing, to say the least.

I noticed a uniform on one of the seats and put it on. A dark brown, nearly black blazer with an almost golden trim, long matching trousers without the trim, black shoes, a white shirt, dark blue jersey, and a red tie. The blazer had epaulets, but no insignia, which was a bit strange.

My foot had recovered by the time I got dressed, but in the meantime, I had had two separate glitches getting the uniform on. Worrisome.

Finally, I got it on and went to go speak to the pilot. The door opened after I knocked, and I went in and sat down after a brief greeting. I wasn't in the mood to speak with another pilot. The last one's screams left an impression on me.

I distracted myself by watching the view. Vale was a rather big coastal city, and Beacon was on a cliff overlooking it all, on the opposite side of the ocean. The mountains surrounding the city provided excellent natural defences, and Beacon's position allowed for easy access to both the city and the Grimm-infested forests on the other side of the mountains. I could even see Patch from here. The island was tiny in the distance, but I had called it home for the last ten years. It was a relaxing flight.

The loosening knot in my chest agreed.

"Mister Jasper, right on time! I trust you've had a fine trip?" A middle-aged woman had been waiting for me when we landed, and greeted me enthusiastically the moment I got off, brushing some light blonde hair from her eyes. Her eyes scanned my body, her lips pursing when they got to my hands.

"It was fine, thanks," Maybe a week ago I could have made a quip about not crashing this time, but somehow I didn't feel like it. I waved at the pilot and looked around. The landing zone overlooked Vale, and there was a long road from the landing to the Academy itself. Beacon was... ostentatious, to say the least. Grand. There were statues and trees in the courtyard in front of the building, through a collection of archways that circled from the base of the tower to the avenue, where it had a large gap. Behind everything was the tower. It was... huge. It overlooked everything and was tall enough to overlook Vale as well. It also had a clock face on it, which was handy, I supposed.

The woman coughed politely to draw my attention, "I'm Professor Peach, I'll be teaching you Field Survival this semester."

"Nice to meet you, Professor. Thanks for fetching me."

"It's no trouble at all," She gestured and started walking down the avenue. "This way." After a moment of silence, she spoke again, "How are you feeling, Mister Jasper?" Her voice held genuine concern.

"I'm fine," I wasn't, "I'm a bit nervous," Understatement, "But I should be good." I hoped. I really really hoped so. I was beginning to doubt it, too. "Nothing to do but press on, though."

"Hmmm," She hummed in response, "Well, if you have any misgivings or requests before we go to the Armoury, feel free to mention them. I may not be a registered Doctor, but I have more than enough experience tending to wounds." I would imagine so, being good enough to teach Survival at one of the four premier Huntsman schools in the world. She probably knew more about the human and faunus biology than the majority of civilian doctors.

"Sure, thanks, Professor."

As we got nearer to the Academy, I could make out more details of the actual buildings themselves. The grounds were rather empty at the moment, seeing as term only started in two days, and I asked Professor Peach a question.

"Where are all the other first years?"

"They're having breakfast at the moment, and afterwards they'll be heading off to collect their gear and head to the launch pads."

I paused. Breakfast. Damn.

"I, uh, forgot about that," I murmured.

"About what? Breakfast?" Came the reply, and I nodded.

She hummed again, pursing her lips with a frown, "I'll get you something while you're in the armoury. You'll have to eat quickly, though."

"Thank you, Professor."

We headed towards a building to the left of the main one, one of quite a few on campus, it appeared. They were seemingly hidden on the approach, but once you got through the courtyard suddenly it seemed like a small town. All the buildings were rather large, but the center one dwarfed them all except for the tower rising up from behind it.

Professor Peach held the door open for me, and I stepped inside. The first thing I noticed was the heat. It was exceptionally hot, and I could hear clanging coming from somewhere below. The forges, then. The second thing I noticed was a massive collection of weapons behind a gate which the Professor unlocked. Rows and rows of weapons hanging on walls, and on the far side, I could see armour as well. I normally didn't use too much armour, but looking down at my arms and legs I had already decided to add some protection to them. They were strong but didn't seem too tough.

"Look around, pick what you need... be responsible. I'll go get something for you to eat." The Professor was standing in the gateway while I had taken a step forward, so I turned to face her.

"Thank you, Professor," I told her, and she nodded.

"Don't take too long, you have forty-five minutes at most before you need to be at the launch zone," And with that she was gone, leaving me to explore a maze of weapons and armour. Like she said, I couldn't take too long, so I focused on things that I knew I could use.

Swords, polearms, pistols, and rifles. Obstinate Reaper had been made midway through my schooling at Signal, and while the aptly summarised that stage of my development, the weapon had served me well. It had been a masterpiece, in my opinion, at least. A sword and pistol pair, which combined to form a glaive, which itself could transform into a rifle as well as fire in the glaive configuration. Mechashifted weapons truly were one of the greatest additions to a Huntsman or Huntress's arsenal. Unfortunately, most mechashifted weapons were unique, crafted from the heart, tailored to the specific Huntsman's needs. Which meant it was unlikely that I would find a mechashifted weapon here that matched my own style. My best bet would be to just pick out a sword, pistol, and glaive, and hope that the craftsman was sensible enough to have made the glaive collapsible.

Fortunately, they were. Honestly, it's not like it was a surprise to find individual weapons that matched my needs. The armoury was truly huge. I had to go through a tremendous amount, but eventually I found a longsword that I felt comfortable with, a pistol that should be powerful enough to pierce most ordinary Grimm armour, and a collapsible glaive. To give credit to the smith, all their polearms were collapsible, which is just smart craftsmanship.

Armour was a little bit easier. I went straight to the light plate and disassembled a suit of armour for my needs. I had a slight feeling that the suit was made for a girl, or a very slender guy, because the armour fit under my clothes. Which was good, I wasn't using the chestplate, after all. I only needed a frame for my limbs. The legplates went under my trousers without the boots, all the way up to just below the hips. The arm plates were similar.

After a moment's thought, I did something a bit unconventional: I put another sleeve of plate on the outside of my left arm, giving me two layers of protection there, as well as a thin, lightly clawed gauntlet on the left hand. I wanted the protection, but I still needed to use the pistol after all. The right hand was only covered with a glove though.

Finally, I just secured the sword's scabbard to my belt, and the pistol holster strapped to the thigh plate below the scabbard, with the collapsed glaive firmly attached to the back of my belt.

All told, I had a minute or two left to look over myself and browse a bit further. I did find a rather appealing looking rifle, but I had enough on me already. Any more and I would start to interfere with my mobility. Professor Peach arrived shortly after I had found said rifle. I put it down and greeted her.

"All done?" She examined me, firstly noticing the armour on my left arm, then a deeper inspection saw her focusing on the armour underneath the clothing as well. Finally, she looked over my weapons, catching sight of the slight bulge of the glaive sitting above my butt, and obviously the placement of my more visible weapons.

"Yep," If she minded my more casual and relaxed tone, she didn't mention it as she handed me some food. A lunch box filled with a few boiled eggs, a croissant and some bacon.

"I would suggest eating everything, you have a long day ahead of you."

"Thanks, Professor," I took it from her, "Do you mind if I start now?"

She shook her head, "Go ahead, we need to be at the pads in five minutes."

We started walking. The food was delicious. Eggs boiled to a very good firmness, slightly more firm than I preferred them, but still creamy and not dry at all. The croissant was great, freshly baked, and the bacon was crispy and not overly salty. Truly a wonderful last meal. Well, I hoped it wasn't my _last_ meal, but I would have been fine if it had been. And I would have other things to worry about if it were, too. I had a smile on my face as we reached a doorway that Peach stopped at.

"I'm going to leave you here," She put her hand on my shoulder, and I held out the empty lunchbox, which she smiled at, "Good, you finished it. Was it good?"

"Delicious, thank you."

"I'm glad. Through this door you'll find a cliff with a series of pads. Find an empty one and stand on it, Professor Ozpin should start his speech any second now. Good luck," With that, she patted my shoulder and walked off.

I took a deep breath and opened the door.

The first thing I noticed was, like Professor Peach had said, a cliff, then the array of students in front of me, as well as Professor Ozpin, his wild gray hair blowing in the wind, a cane in one hand and a cup of what I assumed to be coffee in the other, and Glynda Goodwitch, a beautiful, stern blonde woman with a tattered purple cape and a riding crop that both seemed at odds with her skirt, heels, glasses, and white business shirt. Behind them, beyond the cliff, was the Emerald Forest. It matched the name quite well.

"Aah, our final student has arrived. Right on time, Mister Jasper," Professor Ozpin called out to me, bringing every nervous teenage's gaze to lock onto me. I nodded at him, and when he raised his eyebrow I gave him a small smile, walking towards an empty platform.

"For the past few years, you have honed your skills as warriors. Today, your prowess will be tested in the Emerald Forest." Professor Ozpin's voice echoed out towards all the gathered students.

"Some of you may be wondering about the process that we use to assign teams. It is simple. Each of you will be assigned a team over the course of this test." Glynda Goodwitch, or was that Professor Goodwitch? I assumed it was the latter, continued.

"These will be your teammates for the next four years here at Beacon, so I recommend finding someone with whom you work well to be your partner," Ozpin carried on. He took a sip of coffee, "That being said, the first person you make eye contact with will be your partner for the duration of your studies here."

There was a sudden burst of murmuring and even outright shouting, but Ozpin waited for a brief moment and continued speaking, "Once you have found a partner, navigate towards the northern edge of the forest. You will come across resistance to your presence in the forest. Should you wish to avoid an untimely death, you will exercise lethal force during all encounters.

"Over the course of the initiation you will be monitored and your progress assessed, however, our instructors will not interfere. Even if you are incapacitated or about to be killed. At the end of your journey, you will find a ruin containing several relics. Each pair is to choose one and make your way to the top of the cliff. The item and your progress will be graded and the teams will be thusly assigned," He took another sip, "Are there any questions?"

One boy, a blonde wearing blue jeans and a hoodie with armour attached raised his hand and tried to ask a question, but Ozpin ignored him emphatically.

"Prepare yourselves."

I loosened my knees, crouching slightly and spreading my arms a bit to get my center of gravity a bit lower and my balance a bit more solid. The students to my left got launched away, and I was next. I took a breath, and the pad underneath me flung me upwards.

First order of business once I was in the air was straightening out. The wind was rushing past me quickly, but I was properly orientated due to my balance. My arms went next to my side, and my legs went straight. Next, I pinpointed a landing area. There were students all around me, but I didn't bother paying attention to them. I spotted a clearing and angled myself towards it, spreading my arms and legs now for maximum drag.

I noticed something out of the corner of my eye and rolled to the side, losing a bit of altitude. The thing rocketed past me, but my path destabilised it, and it, a spear I saw then, went slightly off course. I shook my head in irritation, _'Who the hell is throwing weapons right now?'_ Once I managed to stabilise myself again, I was back on track.

Now I was nearing the landing zone, so I calmly rolled backwards, getting my legs in front of me, and reached on my semblance to slow me down.

Nothing happened. My eyes widened, and my breath caught in my throat, _'What?'_ I tried again, harder this time, but again, nothing happened. _'Shit! Shit, shit, shit!'_ My breathing was coming too quickly. In the back of my mind, I noticed that I was hyperventilating. I was descending too quickly, my semblance wasn't responding, and _I didn't know what to do!_ This wasn't supposed to happen!

Suddenly, a calmness radiated throughout my body, centered on my chest. My breathing smoothed out, and I could think again. I rolled back, but I was dangerously close to the treeline now. All I could do was maximise drag again, and angle myself towards some trees. A plan sprung to my mind, and I latched onto it without hesitation.

I had more forward momentum than downwards, but that was there as well. I slowly tilted my torso upwards so that I was facing the direction that I was falling in, as opposed to directly down. _'Okay. Here we go.'_

Three. Two. One.

I spun so that my feet were facing the floor, legs bent, left lifted slightly upwards, left arm bent and parallel to the ground, right arm full outwards with the slightest bit of bending. A thought occurred to me, _'Maybe I should have done this with the arm that has more armour on it,'_ I didn't have time to swap, though, and anyway, my right arm was more prepared to handle it without snapping at my shoulder. Because the right shoulder was also metal.

A split-second passed, and I was under the treeline. My right arm caught a tree and ripped right through it, the mat of aura already covering my arm as I impacted, and my speed slowed dramatically. A second tree was already in front of me, and I leaned backwards, legs together, spearing through it feet first. The upper half came close to me and I gently pushed it to the side, using the momentum to twitch just a bit to the left. There I latched into a third tree with the claws on my gauntlet and ripped a path spiralling down the tree until I lost enough speed that I could push off with my legs.

I hung in the air for a brief moment, the world seeming to come to a standstill, then the ground approached and I put my feet under me. _'Onnnne, two.'_

My feet hit the ground, the robotic limbs holding their own easily, and bent my knees smoothly to cancel my momentum. My right hand touched the ground softly, carrying away the last bit of my movement. I looked up.

Next objectives: find partner, get relic, ?, profit.

Somehow I felt a lot calmer.


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

 _'Sun rises in the East and sets in the West.'_ I looked up through the forest canopy to get a general direction of where to go. _'That means North is... that way.'_ Vale is on the equator, just about, so the sun takes a mostly straight path overhead. It was just a matter of seeing where the light was coming from, recognising that that was East, then drawing a mental ninety-degree angle. That's North. The further you go from the equator it can get a little bit difficult, as the sun moves at an angle to you, so you have to keep that in mind when estimating North.

On the other hand, further from the equator moss generally grows on the North or South of trees, depending on which side of the equator you're on, so that makes it easier as well. Basic survival techniques that you learn in Signal.

North established, I started walking. My arms had decided to take a small break because of the stunt that I just pulled, but they should be ready to go again in a few seconds. I was still confused about what had just happened. Your semblance is a part of what makes you _you_. It was established the moment you unlocked you Aura, maybe even the moment you were _born_ , and as long as your soul persisted in your body and you had Aura to fuel it, it would not fail you.

 _'Yet another thing to worry about later,'_ I mused to myself, _'No use in thinking on it now, I just need to adapt. If I can't use my semblance as a backup when something glitches, I'll just have to be even more careful.'_ This week was steadily just getting worse and worse.

 _'Aaah, there we go.'_ Feeling had just returned to my left arm, so I pulled my pistol out. Just for safety. I hadn't been able to check the recoil on it, but it had decently sized dust rounds so I expected it to be powerful enough to do the job. A little bit longer and I felt my right hand again as well. That was good.

A rustling nearby caught my attention and my pistol was up in a second. The glowing red eyes set in a white mask had me easily squeezing the trigger before I even realised it. Three loud bangs resounded from the barrel in quick succession, one of them flying high before I compensated for the recoil. I whipped around, looking for another, and placed two shots into a second beowolf trying to sneak up from behind.

Annoying creatures. One of the most common types of Grimm, assuming the form of an upright wolf standing slightly taller than most men and women, as well as the signature black skin and fur, white mask, and aforementioned blood red eyes that all Grimm had. Each Grimm's mask is unique to that species, and the beowolf's mask was distinctly canine. Just as a Nevermore's mask resembles the face of a giant raven.

Unfortunately, there is one thing to be said about beowolves: for all their weakness when compared to most other Grimm, they never hunt alone. Almost never in pairs, either. Just like the animals they resemble so much, beowolves hunt in groups. Which meant I wasn't too surprised when more of them came rushing out of the surrounding trees.

Jumping back, I emptied my pistol with another seven shots, three beowolves down. The others barrelled forwards. I didn't have time to reload, so I holstered the pistol and reached behind me. The glaive came out, extending even as I stabbed it into a beowolf's neck. The head flew from the body when I ripped the blade out, spinning to the side. With a swing, an arm was removed from another one. They were trying to flank me. I couldn't let that happen.

I jumped above the beowolf whose arm I had just removed and kicked down on its skull, breaking it. The momentum launched me forwards and I planted the blade in the neck of the one behind it. A twist of my torso and hips had me landing on its head facing the direction I had jumped from, and I tore the glaive out of its neck while launching myself backwards. I flipped once in the air before I landed, spinning the glaive as I rose.

My knee gave out.

"Shit!" I barely had a moment to react, throwing the glaive at the nearest Grimm. My sword cleared its sheath to rip into the next one, the force behind the blow cutting cleanly through its chest. "Come on, come on, come on!" A hobble forwards got me close enough to grab the glaive again, but another beowolf had gotten to my left-hand side before I could. I ducked the swipe at my head and responded with a swipe of my own, ripping open the bright red flesh hidden under its black skin and fur.

My right leg extended fully into a lunge, and my sword stabbed deeply into its chest. I gripped the creature with my left hand and tore the blade out, killing it as well. There were more beowolves around me. My leg had to repair soon, but I couldn't wait for it. I jumped between the legs of one that had gotten between me and the glaive, rolling to come up with the glaive in my left hand and sword in my right. I stood fully, using the glaive as a crutch, and turned to face the horde.

Some people may have used this opportunity to taunt them, a show of bravado to raise their own spirits. I knew that taunting the Grimm was useless. Their hunger for human death never waxed or waned, and my own morale was solid. Maybe I would live, maybe I would die. I was living off of borrowed time, anyway.

The first beowolf to approach me got a sword through the face, the second lost its head as I spun and swiped through the neck, but the third flung me away when I blocked its arm with the glaive. I rolled back with the landing, getting to my feet as well as I could.

A loud gunshot drew my attention, on the other side of the Grimm. There weren't that many left. Maybe seven or eight, but they were getting dangerous. I wasn't mobile enough to prevent flanking like this.

I noticed a flash of yellow through the group, some of which had turned to face the newcomer. The others charged me, and, just as I was preparing to engage them, my leg responded again. _'Fuck yes!'_ With both legs working, I hurled the glaive through the middle Grimm and dashed forward. I leapt into a flying kick with both legs at another, stabbing down into its head as it went down. One of its fellows attempted to claw me so I hacked that arm off, and used its body as a shield from the other. I stabbed into it a few times, its body beginning to evaporate into red flakes. Kicking it into the last Grimm, I ran forward and jumped off the dissolving body to land on it, looking into the crimson eyes as I stabbed through its skull.

The body crumpled, and I hopped off. There was a small cloud of red rising from the rapidly decomposing corpses, covering the area before they dissolved as well.

"Tawn?" The voice was familiar, if not the sheer incredulity that filled it, "Is that you?" Yang Xiao-Long. A classmate for the past few years. We weren't close, but you don't stay in the same class for a while without at least knowing the names of everyone in it. Of course, Yang was the social butterfly of the year, so she tried to get to know everyone. We were amicable. Contrasting her exuberance, I tried to stay to myself mostly, barring a friend or two who had decided to go elsewhere, either to another academy or not getting accepted at all.

"Hi Yang," A small smile twitched on my lips, just enough to be friendly, "Thanks for the save." I turned and faced her, and I could see the moment she noticed my eye. Her eyes widened, her lips opening slightly in shock.

"What... happened to you?" A slight quiver in her voice as she got nearer. I picked the glaive up off of the ground and sheathed it and the sword, then walked closer.

"There was an accident as I came into Vale from Patch," My voice was as flat as I could make it and horrified recognition came onto her face.

"That was _you_? They said you were nearly dead when they got to you!"

"I... Yeah. It was pretty serious. I should probably still be in the hospital. The cybernetics haven't fully calibrated yet." She raised her eyebrow.

"Cybernetic ** _s_**? Plural? And why the hell _aren't_ you in hospital?"

I grimaced, I didn't realise she would catch that. I wasn't really trying to hide it, though.

"Ozpin came to my room the day after I woke up, said that even though I'd miss the first day of the initiation I could still attend the test if I wanted. Otherwise, I'd have to wait a year." I paused briefly, "It may not have been the smartest idea. But I took it anyway.

"And cybernetics... I lost more than just an eye in the accident. I'm still getting used to it."

She looked like she wanted to say something, but stopped and decided on something else. "So... partners?" Her mood flipped quickly and she smiled.

"Sure, partners." I tried to smile back at her, at least. I wasn't sure if it worked too well, but I started walking anyway. "North is this way, let's get going."

Walking through a forest takes time. Whether it's avoiding the numerous roots and underbrush, ducking or avoiding trees and their branches, or just jumping from every sound that might be a Grimm in general. Every now and then we would hear something in the distance, but it was generally too far away to consider looking into it.

I think the worst part was dealing with the glitches in my legs every now and then for stepping on something new. The moment my foot set down in a way it hadn't before, the entire leg would freeze for a few seconds. To be honest, though, I was almost convinced that it was a reaction to how badly the glitch from earlier was and that my Aura was trying to prevent it by overreacting to every possible new issue before it became a problem. I was actually quite glad for that if it was indeed the case. It certainly scared Yang enough the first time I had to catch myself against a tree. I used the glaive as a crutch after the second time and took the opportunity to reload the pistol while we were walking as well.

Of course, we were walking through a Grimm infested forest, so we were bound to come across more sooner or later. Eventually, we heard the thudding footsteps of a pair of Ursa Minor, and I motioned for Yang to follow me. We climbed up a tree quietly and waited for them to lumber underneath us. They were a larger species of Grimm, slightly more rare than Beowolves, but still exceedingly common. They were named due to their shared appearance with bears, albeit keeping the common Grimm features like white bony outgrowths acting as both natural weapons and armour, white mask, and red eyes.

A quick nod to Yang, and we silently dropped down. Or, mostly silently at least. The moment Yang hit the Ursa she released a shout and punched into it, shattering its skull before jumping off. I, on the other hand, silently stabbed through its head and down into its torso, then simply rode the body down until I could step off the head.

"We should be nearing the ruins soon," I mused to Yang, "Hopefully it's not too much longer. I'm not sure how much more of this I can handle, I'm getting pretty tired." I didn't have a scroll to check my aura levels, but I had a pretty good connection to it. It had been feeling rather fuzzy lately and I really needed some time to meditate, but I could feel that I was lower than half. Considering that my aura was normally slightly below average anyway, I wasn't in the mood to find out how long it took before it ran out completely.

"Heh, don't worry, I'll save you if anything happens!"

"I'm not particularly fond of being a damsel in distress, you know."

"Either way, I get to be your knight in shining armour," Yang was grinning, "You can be all, 'Oooh, help me, Yang, you are my only hope!' And I'll be like, 'Have no fear, fair maiden! I shall protect you!' Then you can swoon and fall into my arms as we ride into the sunset!"

"I think you're having a bit too much fun with this," I was amused, but hell if I let her know that.

A few minutes later, we finally broke through the trees into a large clearing. At the centre of it laid a round ruin that definitely looked a few centuries old, if not more. Standing on pedestals that ran the inside circumference of the structure were gold and black chess pieces. There were a few missing from a full chess set, and even then there was only one pair of pawns of each colour. Considering one piece per partnership, that meant that there could be twenty partnerships, which is forty people. Assuming the standard four-man teams, there could potentially be ten teams that passed this test. Even then, seeing as only a rook and a bishop had been taken so far, I didn't see too many people actually passing. Although I hadn't noticed a hell of a lot of people at the launch pads either, so I doubted all the pieces would be used in the first place.

If I considered the pieces from a more symbolic perspective, the only ones that would match me were the knights. Maybe before the crash, I would have chosen a queen, out of pride in my own skills if nothing else, but now... There was much that I could improve on, and I didn't feel like I was quite good enough to be that arrogant.

"How about a cute little pony?" Yang was standing in front of the golden knight, and I honestly don't think she thought about the pieces too much. _'Oh well, the knight matched what I was thinking anyway.'_

"Sure, go ahead."

She grabbed it and put it in a pocket.

"That was easy enough," I said.

"Now just back to the cliffs and we're done!"

 _'Gods, how can she be so damn exuberant?'_ Not that I was complaining, but still.

"Yeah, let's go."

We were halfway back to the trees before we heard a shout.

"Yang!" She spun around and smiled widely, running back.

"Ruby!" I didn't know much about Ruby, only that she existed. Yang seemed attached though, and that became a literal expression when she jumped on her sister and hugged her. I was pretty sure that she was something like two years younger than us, which begged the question of why she was there in the first place.

Accompanying Ruby was a white-haired girl in a white skirt, with a rapier by her side. Now that I thought of it, Ruby was wearing a skirt as well. Seemed like a pretty neat match, to me. They were both really short, too.

"Yang, you wanna let them grab a relic so we can get out of here? Not looking forward to the Grimm stumbling into us."

"Hey! I'm making sure my sister is okay," I may have touched a nerve there, but hell, we were just sitting still here.

"Be my guest, but we've all got a test to finish." She glared at me lightly, but gave up with a sigh and let Ruby go.

"Yeah, yeah."

"Hey, we'll wait for them, but we can't waste time," I looked at her from the corner of my eye, "And trust me, as a younger sibling it isn't always fun to have your older sibling fussing over you."

"Right, your brother was in his last year when we started at Signal, wasn't he?"

I just nodded, and we lapsed into a short silence. Suddenly, the silence was broken by a giant crashing sound, and I looked at Yang for a second. She met my eyes and raised an eyebrow, and I nodded in response.

"Ruby, come on!" Yang shouted at her sister, and her sister yelled back.

"We're coming!" A second later, Ruby and her partner were running next to us, her partner stumbling a bit but Ruby casually matching our speed. "Here we are!" She wasn't even breathing difficultly.

"Yang, your sister is scarily fast. I'm just saying."

"Hey, I'm right here!" And cute, like a puppy.

"Introductions, then, I guess. I'm Tawn Jasper, nice to meet you, Ruby."

"You were second in Yang's year!" Huh, I didn't think she'd know. Nice to be recognised, at least.

"Yes, I was," I confirmed.

"Oh, this is Weiss, she's my partner," The girl in question raised her eyebrow and interrupted her.

"Weiss Schnee, and I can introduce myself."

I raised my own eyebrow at her tone, and Yang bristled to the side but said nothing.

"Nice to meet you, like I said, I'm Tawn Jasper."

Up ahead we could see the source of the noise: four other students fighting a Nevermore, and not doing too well, either. It brought back memories, not good ones, and those memories made me angry. The little group consisted of two boys and two girls. The two guys were a big guy in heavy plate, while the smaller one was a blonde guy who I had noticed earlier trying to ask Ozpin a question. He had a shield on his right arm and a sword in the left hand. Of the girls, one was a black haired girl with a bow on her head and two pistols, and the other was someone that I definitely recognised.

Pyrrha Nikos, winner of the Mistral Regional Tournament... I wasn't sure how many times, but it was more than two. She was also on some cereal or other, but I couldn't have been bothered about that. It was a bit interesting that she'd come to Vale, though. She maintained her iconic gladiator look, with bronze coloured greaves, a corset, a single guard on her left forearm, and a circlet.

The situation didn't look too good, to be honest. The Nevermore was raining its steel-hard feathers down on the group, and only Nikos and the black-haired girl could shoot back. Just as we arrived though, the blonde guy seemed to come up with an idea. Whatever it was, it was probably better for them than sitting around trying to dodge or block feathery spears. He handed his shield to the bigger guy, although he didn't look too happy about it, and called out to the black haired girl.

For a brief moment she looked like she would disagree, but then she nodded and ran straight at the guy who was now crouched holding the shield above his head. She jumped onto the shield and the big guy stood up and flung her upwards just as the Nevermore came flying over for another pass. As she flew into the air, it became obvious that she wouldn't make the height, but then a darkened clone of her appeared below her and she jumped off of it, curving through the air to land on the Nevermore's back, almost blending into the feathers with her mostly black outfit and hair.

It definitely wasn't happy to have her up there and thrashed around, but she ignored its protests and tried to hack into the wings with the swords that her guns had mechashifted into.

Seeing how well the blonde guy's plan had worked, and noticing Nikos' shield, I told Yang about the idea.

"Hey, when I say go, you do what the black haired girl did, and jump off of Nikos' shield, then bring that thing down so we can kill it." Yang nodded determinedly and I shouted over at Nikos, "Nikos!" Her gaze snapped over, and I gestured at the big guy with the shield, then her, then mimicked throwing something on a shield, then pointed at Yang. It didn't even take her a moment to run through the scenario, and she nodded firmly.

"Wait for it," I told Yang, the Nevermore was a bit too far away, "Now!" She sprinted forward, reaching Nikos in a few moments, and jumped solidly onto her small shield. More of a buckler, really, but it did the job as Yang was launched upwards similarly to the black haired girl. Unfortunately, even with Aura, the difference in strength is noticeable between a man and a woman, so Yang didn't fly as high as the other girl did. Which wasn't really a problem, because the moment she got a few meters above Nikos she started firing her gauntlet-shotguns, like I'd hoped. The huge recoil that they had gave her a little extra boost to get up to the Nevermore.

"They'll bring it down, get ready!" I shouted to everyone, and not a moment too soon. Yang had broken one of its wings with a few well-placed punches, and the black-haired girl finally managed to stab into the creature's eye. The Grimm was coming down.

As it got closer we all avoided shooting at it so as not to hit the two girls, but the moment it crashed through the trees and the girls jumped off, we rained hell on it. Or rather, we rained hell on it until a streak of red bolted passed me, running through magical looking green sigils, then jumping on a white sigil to suddenly tear through the Nevermore's neck and end it in a second. As the head fell away, Ruby was revealed standing behind it, lifting a huge scythe onto her shoulder. In the wake of her sprint, red petals fell to the forest floor, blending in with those rising from the Nevermore's corpse as it decomposed.

I looked behind me, seeing Weiss with her rapier up and glowing green, and things line up in my mind. After Yang and the black-haired girl had brought the Nevermore down, Weiss had made sigils in the air that boosted Ruby's speed so that she could run fast enough and gather the momentum that had helped her do so much damage. Pretty impressive, to be honest.

"Nice one," I nodded at her, and she huffed slightly. I could practically hear her inner voice saying, 'Obviously.' But I ignored that and ran to go see where Yang was. I found her not too far away, leaning against a tree with a smile on her face.

"You okay?" I asked her as I got closer, and she shrugged away from the tree.

"Yeah," She looked at me, "Just, proud of my sister, you know?" I nodded at that.

"Yeah, I get it. She's quite impressive, I had wondered a bit about why she was here, but she's obviously ready."

We walked back to where everyone else was gathered, and I asked the blonde guy, "Hey, do you guys have your relics yet?" He shook his head, so I quickly mentioned, "They're over there. If can get one quickly then we can all leave together. Safety in numbers, you know?"

He looked up a bit nervously at the big guy, but nodded slightly, "Yeah, we, we should do that. I'm Jaune, by the way."

"Tawn," I looked up at the other guy, who spoke up for the first time.

"Cardin, Cardin Winchester. Jauney-boy, let's go get that relic."

While they walked away, I moved on to where Yang was busy fawning over her sister, Schnee was talking to Nikos, and the black haired girl was hanging off to the side.

"Hey, I'm Tawn," I spoke to the black haired girl, "The relics are that way, if you guys are interested." My words had gotten Nikos' attention as well, and I pointed it out for them.

"Thank you," Nikos said, "I'm Pyrrha Nikos, but... you obviously know that already." She didn't seem too happy about that.

"Eh, you're pretty famous, you know? It would be more of a feat to not know who you were." She nodded hesitantly in response. "But yeah, you guys might want to go get one of those relics before any more Grimm turn up."

Pyrrha nodded and started walking away, the black haired girl shadowing her quietly.

"Ugh," Schnee grunted, and when I looked at her she was glaring at me in disgust, "Every time." I didn't even have time to ask her what she was talking about before she stomped off towards Ruby.

A minute or two later and everyone had their relics, and we started our way back to the cliffs.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

"Welcome, students, old and new. To our returning students: welcome back. I hope you have had a productive break from classes. To our new arrivals: the Beacon Initiation of the Year Eighty AGW has ended. I am proud to be able to introduce six new teams of Huntsmen and Huntresses to our institution, and we look forward to working with them over the next four years. We have, of course, had to bid goodbye to our senior students from last year. We are sad to have them go, but happy to welcome their successors into the new year. We wish our departed students luck and strength in their future careers, wherever they may go."

The amphitheatre was packed with people listening to Ozpin's speech. His voice was grave, as usual, making even a casual statement feel off, as if every word carried an indecipherable undertone or hidden meaning. I looked to my side where Yang was standing. She was smiling broadly, for quite a few reasons I knew. She was proud of her little sister, which was very warranted. I have been proud as well, to have a sibling enter and pass the Beacon Initiation a full two years before they even graduated from a pre-Huntsman Academy. She was also, of course, proud of herself, for having done so well, as well as our partnership to an extent. Then there was the excitement, a giddy feeling that I'm sure every first year here with us was feeling, getting even the stoic black-haired girl to smile slightly. Lastly, Yang was a very social creature. Rather unlike me, although we had our similarities, being surrounded by so many people made her happy. Although, I wasn't too sure if she would be happy if the tone of the speech were different. Boring speeches kill enthusiasm, after all. At the end of the day, though, Yang wore her heart on her sleeve. I appreciated that. It made her easier to read, and easier to deal with.

A little bit further along, Ruby was standing with her own partner, just outside of arm's reach of Yang. To prevent any unsolicited hugs, I would imagine. Yang was also distinctly lacking in shame, especially when it came to her sister, as I had discovered in the Forest earlier. Or maybe the point of that was just to embarrass Ruby? Older siblings could be annoying like that, but the idea was still sound. Next to Ruby was Weiss, looking the happiest that I'd seen her the whole day. A stiff posture, shoulders back, chin up, textbook self-pride. A little over the top though, especially when she looked the same age as Ruby, which was pretty funny.

"And now, it is with pleasure that I can announce to you our new teams for the year. In no particular order, please come up to the stage when your name is called," He looked down at a scroll in his hand, ever-present cup in the other, "Forest Greene. Umber Jain. Sibyl Flax. Indigo Ambrose." The new team lined up behind him, underneath displays with their portraits. As is common ever since After the Great War, they matched the colours given to them at birth quite well, "You retrieved the black rook pieces, and will be known as team FUSIon, lead by Forest Greene."

A round of applause followed before they filtered offstage.

"Tembra Juno. Vanil Seraph. Ryan Drew. Andrew Steele. You retrieved the gold pawn pieces. From today onwards, you will work together as team STAR, lead by Vanil Seraph." A second round of applause. I could feel the anxiety in my stomach, an irrational thing, considering I had already passed and had a partner that I knew I could work with. I supposed that I was just nervous about who the other two would be. Would we be able to work together? Would we do well together?

"Eve Spring. Damien Burn. Tymphany Gold. Irida Marlon." Some of the names seemed foreign, and I wondered how far some of them had travelled to get here. How much they had gone through, prepared. Risked travelling across oceans or vast areas of land. Risks that had been taken and avoided... unlike me. My mood dampened the slightest bit, but I ignored it. I was determined to enjoy this. I had gone through just as much, likely more, to get here. I had earned this. "You retrieved the golden bishop pieces, and will be known as team DIrEcT, lead by Damien Burn." More applause.

"Nora Valkyrie. Lie Ren. Weiss Schnee. Ruby Rose." I looked across at Ruby, Yang practically bouncing next to me. She looked happy and made her way through the crowd quickly with her partner behind her. As they lined up on stage, I looked over Ruby and her team. It's always easier to pay attention to people that you know, after all. Ruby Rose, standing on stage in a black and red combat skirt, black leggings and red combat boots, and either incredibly dark red or black hair with red highlights. The guy standing next to her, who I assumed was Lie Ren, followed a greener aesthetic. He had jet black hair apart from a single strip of neon pink, and a well-tailored light green jacket with swirls of black and white trousers. Next to him was Weiss, with white hair, a white combat skirt, white leggings and matching platform heels. Finally, there was Nora Valkyrie. Her hair was a bright orange, with a pink skirt, white boots, and a black and white top with a pink heart on her chest.

"You retrieved the golden rook pieces, and will work together as team RRaiSiN, led by Ruby Rose." Yang's excitement reached critical levels, apparently, and she let out a squeal and began actually bouncing. Amidst the applause, it didn't stand out too much, but some of the older students did look at us. Whether out of amusement or annoyance didn't really bother us, although I wasn't sure Yang even noticed. The newly dubbed team Raisin shuffled off as the applause died down, and Ozpin called out the next team.

"Cardin Winchester. Jaune Arc. Dove Bronzewing. Sky Lark." They all walked up, and I noticed that all of them were wearing armour, with Jaune actually having the least overall coverage. Cardin had the most, though, and stood over his teammates by at least a head. "You retrieved the black bishop pieces, and will be known as team Aldwin, lead by Jaune Arc." Jaune was shocked, which was expected. But I wasn't expecting the black shadow that fell over Cardin's face. Pure hatred. It disappeared quickly, but I caught it. It seemed team Aldwin was not going to do very well in terms of unity. I almost pitied Jaune, but he was obviously tactically proficient, so he should have experience as a leader. He should be able to manage, as long as he stood his ground and established respect.

"And finally, Pyrrha Nikos." Whispers broke out in the crowd at her name, but Ozpin ignored it, "Yang Xiao-Long." My partner started walking, and I followed the gap she created, knowing my name would come up, it was the sixth team, after all, "Blake Belladonna." I couldn't spot her through the crowd, but we were nearing the stage. At least I had a name for Pyrrha's partner now. I could see my face on a monitor up ahead, and a piece of anxiety disappeared in my stomach. It was just standing in front of people now, and that was easy enough. "Tawn Jasper." We stepped into our places, looking out at the crowd. My smile had managed to survive so far, and it stayed on as I stood there.

"You retrieved the golden knight pieces, and will work together as team TawNBerrY, lead by Tawn Jasper." Hm. I looked over at the rest of the team. I hoped we would work well together, I would certainly be trying my best. And as I had seen in the Forest, all four of us were competent. I caught Yang's eye and smiled, getting one back. It could certainly have been worse.

The applause started to die down, so after glancing at my new team again, I walked off of my end of the stage. People were smiling at us, but let us move through so that we could gather in a relatively clear spot of the amphitheatre to listen to the rest of Ozpin's speech.

"Now that we have welcomed our new teams, I have a few more announcements to make. Students visiting Vale during the semester should be aware that there has been a marked increase in criminal activity throughout the city. In light of this, should you encounter anything amiss, contact Law Enforcement immediately. I realise that the first instinct of a huntsman or huntress is to act, but do your best to intervene only when the threat of harm is present. Next, should you wish to gain field experience dealing with Grimm, please talk with a member of staff first. We would prefer not to have a situation like last year develop. And finally, this year Vale is hosting the 40th Vytal Festival. Some classes will be changed in preparation for it, and should you wish to compete please ensure that your team is entered into the tryout rounds." Ozpin handed his scroll to Glynda and looked out at us, "Good luck to all of you."

Without another word, he turned and left, Glynda following behind him. For a moment the amphitheatre was silent, but noise quickly grew as people started to leave. I looked at the rest of team Tawnberry and we made our way outside as well.

"So," I said once we got a decent distance away, "Hi again. I hope we'll work well together." The sun had set not too long ago, and now the moon was illuminating the trees in the courtyard.

"Hah, I'm sure we will, Tawn! We were awesome with that Nevermore, after all!" I'll be honest, thank gods for Yang sometimes.

"Indeed. I think we have a great team here, I'm sure we'll do excellently." Pyrrha had a nice voice. It was strange to only notice it now, as opposed to earlier, but she spoke clearly and evenly with a not quite gentle tone, but close. Kind. She had a kind voice. I smiled at her gratefully.

We all looked at our last teammate, who looked back at us and raised an eyebrow. I involuntarily raised one back, chuckling inside when I realised that I had. A heartbeat or two passed and I was almost expecting her to stay silent, before she finally said, "Sure." I could almost feel how taken aback Yang was after that build-up. I chuckled a bit.

"Fair enough." I thought of priorities for a moment, "So, food or rooms first?" It was, after all, evening and we hadn't eaten since breakfast. A chorus of, 'Food,' came forth, so I declared, "Food it is, then! Now, which way is it to the cafeteria?" Blake and Pyrrha looked at me curiously, but Yang already knew the deal, "I missed the first day." I think that just increased their curiosity, but neither of them asked anything. I appreciated it.

"This way," Yang chose to break the silence by walking towards a building, the rest of us following behind. We weren't the only students to think about supper we found when we got inside. Half of the hall was already filled with students spread out over long tables. We chose a slightly more secluded area and gathered some food off of platters before sitting down.

For a brief moment, I thought about trying to start a conversation, but then I thought better of it and started eating. The food was glorious, after all, and it had been a long day. I didn't have the energy to deal with talking anymore. We just sat and quietly ate our food. I did take some note about what everyone else had chosen to eat, but knowing what food someone likes doesn't give you much insight into their personality, unfortunately. I would just have to learn to know them normally.

Once I had put the final bite into my mouth, I looked up to see that Pyrrha and Yang were still eating, with Blake having quietly taken out a book to read.

"Hey, Yang, can I borrow your scroll for a sec?" I finally broke the little bubble of silence around our group.

"Huh? Yeah, what for?" She stopped eating for a second to take it out. It was a golden model, because of course Yang's scroll would be gold, with the usual two ends that you pull apart to extend the screen in the middle.

"Just need a map," I paused briefly before realising something else, "And a class schedule. We need to know what time we'll need to be at lectures and everything."

She raised her eyebrow at me, "You're certainly starting early, Mr Leader. But yeah, sure. Here." I took it from her and opened it up, only to raise my own eyebrow at the locked screen. I turned my head to look at her. "You didn't say you wanted me to unlock it too!" She sing-songed. I lowered my eyebrow into a deadpan stare, turning the scroll to face her.

"Hah, relax. Give it a second." A second later and it recognised her face, and I turned it away from her. I held the stare on her for a few seconds longer before smiling slightly and shaking my head.

"Thanks," I grumbled slightly and accessed the Academy's network. I had quite a bit that I would have to get a handle on. New clothes would be needed, so that meant an excursion into town sometime during the week. Preferably tomorrow afternoon, and while I was doing that I could get a new scroll as well. I would need to go to the CCT Tower soon to contact my mom too. Apart from that... I lived pretty lightly, so nothing else really. Toiletries, I supposed. The more mundane realities of living in a dorm.

And then my equipment. I already had plans for Obstinate Reaper 2.0, to be named something a little bit less edgy, which meant that I would be spending some time in the forge soon. Preferably as soon as possible, really. On top of just a weapon, I had the chance to personalise 'myself' as well. It would probably help me to come to terms with the situation a bit better as well. I also had some ideas with regards to that, but I had much less experience with modifying cybernetic prosthetics than I did making mechashifting weapons.

According to the schedule, we only had a single lecture or class every day. Each lecture or class was allocated a full three hours, so I was hoping that there were breaks or something in between. Otherwise, I could foresee a very difficult few years ahead. On top of that, we had six hours every Saturday assigned to "Survival Practicals", so that would either be something to look forward to or to dread. The rest of our time was... mostly free.

Monday's lecture, Grimm Studies, was in the late morning, so I could head down to the forge and hammer some things out. Then after the lecture, I would see what the others thought about a quick trip into the city to get some clothes and stuff.

Tuesday was History, and quite early in the morning as well. It left the rest of the day free though, so we could put some team training in there, and I could hopefully finish my weapon.

Wednesday was Combat Class at noon, so I assumed fighting would be happening. The time before the class could be for ironing out snags in the weapon and get started on the prosthetics, while afterwards could be for team training or socialising, or even just homework.

Thursday was Applied Dust and Aura Studies. I wasn't sure how advanced it was, but I could use the chance to get more in touch with my aura. I hadn't been feeling as connected as I used to. Maybe it was just the trauma and I would get over it, maybe it was the new limbs, I wasn't sure. I needed to find out, though. Where others could rely on their aura to tank them through fights, I often had to micromanage it to get it to last in a duel. I would need to work on it until I got it back under control. Luckily the class was rather late in the afternoon, so I had the rest of the day to prepare for it.

Finally, Survival with Professor Peach, from late morning to early afternoon on Friday. I wasn't too sure what to expect for it, but it left time for the team in the afternoon. Saturday was essentially blocked out for Survival as well, and Sunday was going to be a day of rest. Whether that meant going into the city or just staying in bed the whole day, nothing Academy or hunting related would be done then.

Now it was just a matter of getting to the dorms and seeing how the rest of the team felt about my rough week plan. All in all, I was used to making plans like this for myself, so it wasn't much of a hassle for me to extend it to a team, and it still left more than enough time for personal activities during the week. If each class was three hours, team training would also be around three hours, which left another six for pretty much whatever. I would imagine a good amount of that would be studying as well though, so that was something to be aware of too.

I looked up to see Pyrrha polishing off the last of the food and Yang looking around idly.

"Thanks, Yang," I brought up a map of Beacon quickly before handing her scroll back, "Everyone done?" Not a moment after I asked, Yang got up, so we all followed suit. We dropped our plates off at the kitchen on the way out and navigated our way to the dorm rooms.

"It's... not bad," It was a single room, with four beds, a few dressers, and a large arching window in the middle of the far wall. There was an en-suite bathroom off to the side that was decently sized as well, but the room itself didn't seem like it was designed for four people. Especially not with four beds lined up against one wall.

"It's tiny, you mean," Yang, ever the blunt one, retorted, "Although," She dragged it out slyly, "Three innocent young maidens in a room all to yourself? Maybe we're going to have to keep an eye on you to make sure you don't," she lifted her hand to her chest and swooned dramatically, a devious glitter in her eye, "Tawn-ish our purity."

Everyone stopped for a second. It felt as if the world stuttered, and all three of us turned to Yang. Then looked at each other.

"We," Pyrrha recovered valiantly, "Could always shift the beds around. Maybe if we moved them over into the corners and along the walls?"

A bit of manoeuvring later, and we had gotten the dressers on the left side of the room, between the bathroom door and entrance door, and all four beds flat against the far and right-hand walls, leaving plenty space in the middle of the room. The physical effort helped our damaged souls recover, and we did our best to put it out of our mind. I would say one thing, though. It certainly removed any awkwardness that may have developed from the situation with surgical precision. I was just glad she was so nice, psychological scarring aside.

"That is better," I said, "Good idea, Pyrrha." She nodded silently in reply. Before anything else could happen, Blake staked her claim on the bed in the corner hidden from the entrance door by putting her bags down in front of it and gracefully flopping down on it. Pyrrha seemed to be debating between the window and the far right-hand corner, before Yang took the choice away from her by jumping onto the bed on the right side of the window. Not wanting to take the one closest to the bathroom, even if it did have window space, she took the spot in the corner opposite her partner.

Having stood back from the claiming of beds in amusement, I finally walked over to the last bed available and sat down. It was a pretty comfortable bed, so I turned to lie on fully. Then I realised something. I didn't have any other clothes to wear for tomorrow. _'Aaah, fuck it. I'll put it in the washing machine and tumble dry it in the morning. I'll get another pair of pants and more shirts, socks, and underwear on the way to the forge.'_

"Just to make sure everyone knows, first class is at ten tomorrow morning." I got a half-hearted hum of acknowledgement from Yang for that, but silence from everyone else. A quick thought came to me then: I had better use this moment to my advantage. If they were resting now, they would want to use the bathroom later and I knew how long girls took in the shower.

Quietly, I got up and tip-toed into the bathroom, spotting Pyrrha's amused face looking at me and smiling back as I closed the door. Luckily there were already towels in there, so that was one thing less to worry about. Only after putting the uniform in the wash did I suddenly remember the armour beneath the clothing. I had taken the left arm overplate off when putting our weapons and armour in our lockers, but the armour underneath the uniform had felt natural enough that I had forgotten about it. It hadn't gotten dirty though, so I just took it off and left it in a neat pile to put on my dresser.

It was... strange showering with the prosthetics. Having water running in between the metal and around the wires felt weird, but even though it was machinery it wasn't powered by electricity or dust and water had no effect on it. It operated solely through my aura so I wasn't in any danger of them shorting out or something like that. The most solid part of my replacements was the right side of my torso. Where everything else was essentially just a skeleton that provided nothing more than basic functionality, they had had to replace my entire right-hand lung, most of those ribs, and a significant amount of muscle, leaving my torso about the same size as it was before, just with metal instead of flesh. The arm was directly connected to the metal shoulder by way of a motor joint, unlike the left arm which still had a normal shoulder.

I guessed that I had taken the most damage to the right side and my body reflexively curled in that direction, getting my other leg and arm in danger too. There was nothing that I could change now though, and if the water that I tasted on my lips was a little bit salty then I wasn't going to tell anyone.

Running my hand through my hair, I decided that I would grow it out. I had kept it relatively short at Signal because long hair was a liability in fighting, but it was something that was still alive. Well, not really, hair isn't alive, but it's organic. A part of me that wasn't attached and plugged in.

Eventually, I had cleaned myself as thoroughly as I could and got out. I had to fetch my underwear from the washing machine to throw it in the drier for a minute so that I could wear it, but that didn't take too long. And I had to rinse my mouth out with water. I would have to ask one of the girls if they'd mind me using their toothpaste in the morning.

Fifteen minutes after I had stepped into the bathroom, I stepped out. Pyrrha and Yang were talking about something, and the words died on her lips as she turned to see me. Yang stared. Blake looked up from her book at the sudden silence.

I did my best to smile at them, almost like saying, 'Hey, no big deal, right?' And put the armour on my dresser. "Shower's open if you want to use it," I shrugged and sat on my bed. "I'm going to sleep now, it's been a," I paused as I realised everything that had happened, "Long day." From getting up in the hospital and limping into a bullhead to not being able to hold my own against a pack of Beowolves. Granted, it had been a fairly big one, but I'd taken worse in the past. To getting put as the leader of this team. I laid down and got under the covers.

"Good night, guys. Girls." I huffed slightly in amusement as my brain made the split-second correction a moment too late.

I felt like Yang would have made a joke there, but she settled for a sombre, "Goodnight," instead. Blake and Pyrrha followed suit, and soon enough I didn't remember anything else.


End file.
